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PerkinElmer

From Alfawiki
PerkinElmer, Inc.
Company typePublic (before 2022), Private (after 2022 for some divisions)
IndustryDiagnostics, Life Sciences, Food, Environmental and Industrial Testing
Founded1937; 89 years ago (1937)
FounderRichard Perkin, Charles Elmer
Headquarters
Waltham, Massachusetts
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide (190 countries)
ProductsAnalytical devices, genetic and diagnostic testing tools, medical imaging components, software applications, instruments, consumables
Websitewww.perkinelmer.com

PerkinElmer, Inc., originally known as Perkin-Elmer, is a multinational American enterprise established in 1937, initially specializing in precision optical instruments. Throughout its history, the company expanded into sectors such as defense, semiconductors, and computing through strategic acquisitions and divestitures. By the early 2000s, PerkinElmer shifted its focus toward diagnostics, life sciences research, as well as food, environmental, and industrial testing markets. Its offerings encompass detection technologies, imaging systems, informatics solutions, along with related services. The company’s range of products includes analytical devices, genetic and diagnostic testing tools, components for medical imaging, software applications, instruments, and consumables. Operating across 190 countries worldwide, PerkinElmer was also a constituent of the S&P 500 Index.

The company experienced two significant restructurings. In 1999, following a merger with EG&G, it retained the Analytical Instruments Division under the Perkin-Elmer brand while spinning off its life sciences segment into PE Corporation. Another division occurred in 2022 when the applied technologies, food-related units, and enterprise services were acquired by private equity firm New Mountain Capital for $2.45 billion; this portion continued as PerkinElmer but transitioned to private ownership. Meanwhile, the life sciences and diagnostics operations remained publicly traded and were rebranded as Revvity, Inc. in 2023.

Founding

Richard Perkin abandoned his chemical engineering studies to pursue a career on Wall Street but maintained his enthusiasm for science by attending public lectures. During one such astronomy lecture, he met Charles Elmer, who was retiring from his court reporting supplies business. United by their mutual interest in astronomy, they established a precision optics company in 1937 with an initial investment of $20,000.

Beginning operations from a modest office in Manhattan, they soon opened a manufacturing plant in Jersey City and formally incorporated the business in 1939. By 1941, the company had relocated to Connecticut and expanded considerably during World War II by producing optical equipment for range finders, bombsights, and reconnaissance devices—earning the U.S. Navy’s inaugural "E" for Excellence award in 1942.

Throughout the 1960s, Perkin-Elmer maintained a strong defense presence and contributed to notable programs such as OAO-3 (a 36-inch ultraviolet space telescope), Skylab, and Apollo missions—most famously supplying a carbon dioxide sensor vital during Apollo 13. The firm provided optical systems for reconnaissance aircraft, high-altitude balloon projects like Project Genetrix, and satellites. A landmark innovation was the 1955 Transverse Panoramic Camera that captured horizon-to-horizon images from altitudes of 40,000 feet. Additionally, their laser retroreflectors were deployed on the lunar surface during Apollo 11.

Following Elmer’s death in 1954, the company began trading over-the-counter shortly thereafter and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange by December 1960. Perkin served as president and CEO until June 1961 before Robert Lewis took over; Perkin remained chairman until his passing in 1969.

Semiconductor manufacturing

In 1967, Perkin-Elmer was tasked by the U.S. Air Force to develop an all-optical “masking” technology for semiconductor production. Conventional photolithography involved pressing a physical mask directly onto silicon wafers—a process prone to defects caused by dust or photoresist contamination that resulted in high failure rates among chips. The Air Force sought a more dependable method amid increasing dependence on integrated circuits.

Perkin-Elmer responded with the Microprojector: a large device resembling a photocopier that projected mask patterns onto wafers without physical contact. This system utilized an intricate lens assembly composed of sixteen elements designed to focus specific wavelengths from a powerful 1,000-watt mercury-vapor lamp.

Engineers Harold Hemstreet and Abe Offner further refined this approach by substituting lenses with mirrors to circumvent multispectral focusing challenges. Their Projection Scanning Aligner—marketed as Micralign—revolutionized semiconductor fabrication by enabling an assembly-line style process that increased functional chip yields from roughly 10% to approximately 70% virtually overnight. This advancement led to dramatic price reductions; for instance, the MOS 6502 microprocessor retailed near US$20 compared to about US$250 for its predecessor Motorola 6800.

The success of Micralign propelled Perkin-Elmer to become the leading supplier of chip-making equipment within three years. However, during the 1980s the company lagged behind competitors due to delayed adoption of stepping aligner technology that employed smaller masks incrementally moved across wafers. As a result, Perkin-Elmer never regained its dominant position and eventually divested this division to The Silicon Valley Group.

Laboratory Instruments

During the early 1990s, Perkin-Elmer collaborated initially with Cetus Corporation and subsequently with Hoffmann-La Roche to develop pioneering polymerase chain reaction (PCR) devices, thereby enhancing its presence in the life sciences instrumentation sector. From 1954 until 2001, the company’s analytical instruments division maintained a global operation through subsidiaries including Bodenseewerk Perkin-Elmer GmbH in Germany and Perkin Elmer Ltd in the United Kingdom.

Computer Systems Division

Perkin-Elmer ventured into computer manufacturing by acquiring Interdata, Inc. between 1973 and 1974 for approximately US$63 million, which elevated its annual revenue beyond US$200 million. Known also as the Data Systems Group, this division manufactured 32-bit computers comparable to IBM’s System/370 and operated on the OS/32MT system.

Based in Monmouth County, New Jersey, the division was a significant employer with roughly 1,700 employees and an additional facility in Oceanport employing about 800 workers. By the early 1980s, it achieved sales of $259 million. Despite generating profits, the division lacked broad industry recognition due to its integration within a diversified parent corporation.

The Wollongong Group commercialized a UNIX port for Interdata’s 7/32 hardware platform, originally developed at the University of Wollongong. This represented the first UNIX port beyond Digital Equipment Corporation’s PDP series and was available on Perkin-Elmer minicomputers by 1982.

In 1985, Perkin-Elmer spun off its computer manufacturing arm as Concurrent Computer Corporation to establish a clearer market identity. Initially retained as a wholly owned subsidiary, Concurrent went public in February 1986 with Perkin-Elmer maintaining an 82% ownership stake. Following a merger with MASSCOMP in 1988, Perkin-Elmer divested its shares and fully exited the computing sector to concentrate on its primary business lines.

1999 Developments

The contemporary PerkinElmer was formed in 1999 through the merger of divisions from two former S&P 500 firms: EG&G Inc., based in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and Perkin-Elmer from Norwalk, Connecticut. On May 28, 1999, EG&G’s non-government segment acquired Perkin-Elmer’s Analytical Instruments Division for US$425 million, adopting the Perkin-Elmer brand name under new leadership to establish the new PerkinElmer. At that time, EG&G served multiple sectors including automotive, healthcare, aerospace, and photography.

The former Perkin-Elmer Board and executive team continued under the newly created PE Corporation, which had been formerly known as Perkin-Elmer’s Life Sciences division. Its two tracking stock entities—Celera Genomics and PE Biosystems—were instrumental players in the biotechnology competition related to the Human Genome Project. In 2001, Perkin-Elmer expanded by acquiring NEN Life Sciences’ Boston operations.

Recent History

In 1992, PerkinElmer merged with Applied Biosystems; later in 1997 it combined with PerSeptive Biosystems. On July 14, 1999, it implemented workforce reductions by cutting 350 positions (about 12%) to lower expenses. In 2006, the company divested its Fluid Sciences segment for roughly US$400 million to prioritize growth areas such as health sciences and photonics. Subsequently, it acquired several smaller firms including Spectral Genomics, Improvision, Evotec-Technologies (licensed until late 2007), Euroscreen, ViaCell, and Avalon Instruments.

Expanding its medical footprint further, PerkinElmer purchased clinical laboratories like NTD Labs in July 2006, specializing in prenatal diagnostics. The acquisition of ViaCell in 2007 for US$300 million—later renamed ViaCord—added cord blood storage services to its portfolio. Earlier acquisitions such as Packard Bioscience and Agincourt Technologies in 2001 enhanced its capabilities in laboratory automation and liquid handling essential for high-throughput sequencing applications.

In March 2008, PerkinElmer acquired Pediatrix Screening (now operating as PerkinElmer Genetics), a newborn screening laboratory located in Pennsylvania. By May 2011, it had signed an agreement to acquire CambridgeSoft and finalized the purchase of ArtusLabs. Later that year in September, it completed the acquisition of Caliper Life Sciences for US$600 million.

December 2014 marked an expansion into food testing through acquiring Perten Instruments for US$266 million. The diagnostics segment was further bolstered by purchasing Swedish company Vanadis Diagnostics in January 2016 and Delta Instruments in February of the same year. Entering the Indian market occurred in January 2017 via acquisition of Tulip Diagnostics; shortly after in May 2017 came the purchase of Euroimmun Medical Laboratory Diagnostics for about US$1.3 billion.

In 2018, PerkinElmer extended its international presence by acquiring Australian biotechnology firm RHS Ltd., Shanghai Spectrum Instruments Co. Ltd., a Chinese analytical instrument manufacturer, and Cisbio Bioassays based in France specializing in diagnostics.

In November 2020, PerkinElmer announced plans to acquire Horizon Discovery Group for approximately US$383 million. This was followed by completing acquisition of Oxford Immunotec Global PLC in March 2021. Additional purchases included Nexcelom Bioscience for US$260 million and Immunodiagnostic Systems Holdings PLC for US$155 million during May of that year. In June, it acquired SIRION Biotech focusing on viral vector gene delivery technologies. In July 2021, PerkinElmer revealed a major acquisition of BioLegend valued at US$5.25 billion.

Acquisition history

  • PerkinElmer (Founded 1935; current entity established following EG&G Inc.'s acquisition of Perkin-Elmer Analytical Instruments Division)
    • Applied Biosystems (Merged in 1992)
    • PerSeptive Biosystems (Acquired 1997)
    • Spectral Genomics
    • Improvision
    • Evotec-Technologies
    • Euroscreen
    • ViaCell
    • Avalon Instruments
    • Packard Bioscience Inc (Purchased 2003)
    • NTD Labs (Purchased 2006)
    • ViaCell, Inc. (Purchased 2007)
    • Pediatrix Screening (Purchased 2008)
    • CambridgeSoft (Acquired 2011)
    • ArtusLabs (Acquired 2011)
    • Caliper Life Sciences (Acquired 2011)
      • Zymark (Acquired 2003)
      • NovaScreen Biosciences Corporation (Acquired 2005)
      • Xenogen Corporation (Acquired 2006)
        • Xenogen Biosciences
      • Cambridge Research & Instrumentation Inc. (Acquired 2010)
    • Perten Instruments (Acquired 2014)
    • Vanadis Diagnostics (Acquired 2016)
    • Delta Instruments (Acquired 2016)
    • Tulip Diagnostics (Acquired 2017)
    • Euroimmun Medical Laboratory Diagnostics (Acquired 2017)
    • RHS Ltd (Acquired 2018)
    • Shanghai Spectrum Instruments Co. Ltd (Acquired 2018)
    • Cisbio Bioassays (Acquired 2018)
    • Horizon Discovery Group (Acquired 2020)
    • Oxford Immunotec Global PLC (Acquired 2021)
    • Nexcelom Bioscience (Acquired 2021)
    • Immunodiagnostic Systems Holdings PLC (Acquired 2021)
    • SIRION Biotech (Acquired 2021)
    • BioLegend (Acquired 2021)
      • BioLegend Japan KK
      • BioLegend UK Ltd
      • BioLegend GmbH

Hubble optics project

The Danbury Optical Systems division of Perkin-Elmer was tasked with manufacturing the optical parts for the Hubble Space Telescope. Construction of the primary mirror between 1979 and 1981 encountered budget excesses and schedule delays, which strained relations with NASA. A flawed calibration of the null corrector led to pronounced spherical aberration that was discovered after the telescope's deployment during STS-31. Although Perkin-Elmer detected imperfections in the mirror's surface, it failed to disclose this information to NASA, prompting a major investigation that highlighted management shortcomings and violations of quality assurance protocols.

During Hubble's initial servicing mission STS-61, corrective optics were installed to adjust the secondary mirror; however, the aberration in the primary mirror itself remained unaddressed.

To settle potential claims under the False Claims Act, Perkin-Elmer consented to a payment of US$15 million, effectively relinquishing its fees for mirror polishing services. Hughes Aircraft, which had acquired the Danbury unit after launch, paid an additional US$10 million. The Department of Justice asserted that both firms should have been aware of the defective testing methods, raising broader concerns about accountability for aerospace equipment failures.

KH-9 Hexagon

At its Danbury, Connecticut facility, Perkin-Elmer was responsible for developing optical systems used in the KH-9 Hexagon series of reconnaissance spy satellites.

External links

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